BWW Previews: Spring High School Musical Season, 2015!

It's that time of year again: The High School Theatre Department Spring Productions are afoot!

Santa Barbara is fortunate to have several high schools that offer excellent theatre and performance departments for students interested in learning the crafts of acting and theatrical design and production. Often these productions are where students develop a love for the theatre that inspires them to continue performing and designing throughout their lives, whether on a professional, collegiate, or commmunity level. This spring, Santa Barbara high school students bring audiences a range of exciting musicals, including Legally Blonde, Young Frankenstein, Crazy for You, and The Mystery of Edwin Drood.

Here's a preview of this spring's High School Productions:

DOS PUEBLOS HIGH SCHOOL Presents:
LEGALLY BLONDE
Book by Heather Hach
Music and Lyrics by Laurence O'Keefe and Nell Benjamin
Based on the novel by Amanda Brown and the MGM motion picture Legally Blonde
Co-directed by Clark Sayre and Gioia Marchese

Oh my God, oh my GOD, you guys! It's Legally Blonde the musical! Based on my experiences at Marie's Crisis, a bar in the village where everyone in the room requests and sings showtunes, it's clear that Legally Blonde has left it's mark on the musical theatre community as an infectiously catchy show that people can't help but be excited about. Based on the popular MGM movie of the same name, it's safe to say that most people of a certain age group are familiar with the story of Elle Woods (Gracie Barker), President of the fashion-conscious Delta Nu sorority. When Elle's boyfriend, Warner Hunting III (David Jimenez), leaves to attend Harvard Law School, he breaks off their relationship to pursue the possibility of a more "serious" girlfriend, one more suited to his career ambitions. Elle is left with a complete and sudden loss of direction.

Legally Blonde begins as a play about a woman fighting to save the relationship she defines herself by, but evolves into a story of self-discovery and empowerment as Elle realizes her abilities and ambitions are far more advanced than a lifetime of obsession over fashion and a boyfriend can justify. Elle finds she has the capacity and savvy to meet the requirements to enroll at Harvard Law, and decides to take the law school plunge--ostensibly to win back her boyfriend. While things may not end well for Elle and Huntington, Elle's journey through the challenges of higher education and navigating a world of cultural norms drastically different from those she's accustomed to in Southern California allow her to recognize her inherent strength, intelligence, and capabilities. She wins respect from her peers, not to mention her first legal case, and--most importantly--develops belief in her own self-reliance.

Legally Blonde features Gracie Barker, David Jimenez, Parker Sassola, Keri Parsons, Ryan Evans, and Luana Psaros.

DOS PUEBLOS HIGH SCHOOL Presents:
LEGALLY BLONDE
Co-directed by Clark Sayre and Gioia Marchese

April 17th - 25th, 2015
Fridays @ 7pm, Saturdays @ 2pm & 7pm, Thursday @ 7pm
@ Elings Performing Arts Center: Dos Pueblos High School

TICKETS $12 for adults
$10 for students, children, and seniors (65+)
$25 for premier seats (limited availability)
BOX OFFICE Monday - Friday 3pm-5pm

www.dptheatrecompany.org

LAGUNA BLANCA SCHOOL Presents:
Young Frankenstein
By Mel Brooks and Thomas Meehan
Directed by Kate Bergstrom

Mel Brook's humorous classic, Young Frankenstein, is well-suited as a theatrical production with its wild characters and an aesthetic of humor that is both silly and strange. The musical aspect of the production only adds to the fun of Mel Brooks' madcap parody of Mary Shelly's tragic horror novel.

Young Frankenstein is the slightly absurd story of young Victor Frankenstein, who takes over the family castle and upholds the Frankenstein legacy for blasphemous, outrageous scientific experimentation. His creations, of course, aren't always a vision of perfection (remember the Abby Normal brain?). Joining Victor in his search for the secret of yielding life from lifelessness is his wacky fiancé, the obligatory hunchback assistant, and, of course, the monster the young doctor creates.

Featuring a cast of Laguna Blanca's students, including Travis Smillie, Mitchell Gravelle, Mathew Goldsholl, Veleria Rodriguez, Bea Tolan, John Curran, Joackson Hurley, Fiona Flynn, Charlotte Thomas, Maddy Lazarovitz, Siman Lea, Camila Lemere, Aura Carlson, Rose Houghlet, Brooklyn Kinsler and Sofia Bakaev. Directed by Kate Bergstrom, choreography by Jessica Hambright, Costume design by Dana Ortner, and Musical direction by Ben Saunders.

April 23-25 7 p.m.
@ The Spaulding Auditorium, Laguna Blanca School.

SAN MARCOS HIGH SCHOOL Presents:
Crazy For You
Book by Ken Ludwig
Music and Lyrics by George and Ira Gershwin
Directed by Riley Berris

Loosely based on the Gershwins' 1930 musical, Crazy Girl, Crazy For You is a show in the true spirit of American musical theatre. Bobby Child (Ryan Ostendorf) is a wealthy banker's son whose attempts to break into show business are unsuccessful (though his passion for the theatre isn't tempered by his failures). Sent by his family to foreclose a failing theatre in a defunct mining town in Nevada, Bobby falls in love with the only woman left in town: Polly, the theatre owner's daughter. In an attempt to win the affections of the girl and save the theatre, Bobby perpetuates the false identity (always an effective theatrical device) of a successful producer, and plans a show of his own (along with his band of follies-style chorus girls and the last residents of the dying town: the down-and-out cowboys.)

Sure to be light and fun with a classic soundtrack of Gershwin tunes, Crazy For You incorporates the traditional, timeless elements of classic American musical theatre.

SAN MARCOS HIGH SCHOOL Presents:
Crazy For You
Book by Ken Ludwig
Music and Lyrics by George and Ira Gershwin
Directed by Riley Berris

April 30th, May 1st, 2nd, 7th, 8th, and 9th, at 7pm
San Marcos High School Theater.
4750 Hollister Ave, Santa Barbara, CA, 93110

Tickets: at the door, or online at shopsmroyals.org

Photo Credit - Blake Bronstad

SANTA BARBARA HIGH SCHOOL Presents:
The Mystery of Edwin Drood
By Rupert Holmes
Directed by Otto Layman

A mystery within a play within a play is a fairly coherent way of describing Rupert Holmes' musical about love, secrets, and possible murder. The winner of five Tony awards, The Mystery of Edwin Drood has been mounted and remounted on Broadway (most recently in 2012) to much success. It's easy to see why people are so invested in the show: the outcome of the play (and the fate of the characters) is left up to the audience, who take a vote at play's end to determine who murdered Edwin Drood.

The Mystery of Edwin Drood is actually an unfinished novel by Charles Dickens. In Holmes' musical, the "Music Hall Royale," a Victorian performance troupe, undertakes the task of finishing the novel in their play. Drood tells the story of choirmaster John Jasper, in love with his music student (and nephew, Edwin Drood's, fiancée), Rosa Bud. When Drood disappears under mysterious circumstances, questions abound regarding his whereabouts and rumors of his murder come in not-so-quiet whispers. But without Dicken's finished manuscript, it's impossible to know exactly what the author had truly intended for Drood's fate.

An interesting concept, The Mystery of Edwin Drood should be a crowd-pleaser: it's an engaging musical that demands audience participation. By the play's end, each character has revealed a motive for murder, and the ending varies based on the outcome of the audience vote, so it may never play the same way twice.

Santa Barbara High School Presents:
The Mystery of Edwin Drood
By Rupert Holmes
Directed by Otto Layman

April 24, 25, 30 & May 1, 2 at 7pm
May 3 at 2pm

@ Santa Barbara High School

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